IGCSE Accounting: The trial balance and correction of errors (Cambridge 0452) – Revision Notes

Syllabus edition note. This resource follows the Cambridge IGCSE Accounting 0452 syllabus (and Cambridge O Level Accounting 7707, which has the same subject content for the same series) for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029 (version 1), first examined in the March 2027 series in India and the June 2027 series elsewhere. If you sit 0452 in November 2026, you sit the 2026 syllabus (version 2), which differs: Paper 1 has 35 multiple-choice marks in 1 hour 15 minutes, not 40 marks in 1 hour 30 minutes; Topic 7 is “Accounting principles and policies”, without 7.2 Ethical considerations or 7.3 Technology and sustainability; 4.4 is “Irrecoverable debts and provision for doubtful debts”; income statements are named instead of statements of profit or loss; three-column running balance accounts are not required; Clubs and societies is 5.4 and Manufacturing accounts 5.5; and 6.3 is “Inter-firm comparison”. For this topic, the 2026 syllabus also lists dividends among the cash book updates, and it does not include the impact of digital transactions on bank reconciliation or on control accounts. If you sit in November 2026, work from the 2026 syllabus on the Cambridge International website.

Quick recall for sections 3.1 (The trial balance) and 3.2 (Corrections of errors) of the Cambridge IGCSE Accounting syllabus for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029 (version 1). All candidates sit the same papers, so nothing here is tier-specific. For full explanations and longer worked examples, read the study guide; then test yourself with the practice questions. The wider topic is covered in the Verification of Accounting Records guide and its earlier notes. Course pages: Cambridge IGCSE Accounting hub, printable checklist and free 10-minute diagnostics. Amounts are in dollars ($); tables show bare figures.

3.1 The trial balance

Definition. A listing of every ledger balance on a given date, split between a debit and a credit column.

Purposes	Limitations
Tests that total debits equal total credits	Equal totals do not prove the records are correct
Signals that an error exists when the totals differ	Six error types leave the totals equal
Gives the balances needed for the financial statements	Does not say which account is wrong

Where each balance goes

Debit	Credit
Assets, expenses, purchases, carriage inwards	Liabilities, revenue and other income
Sales returns, drawings, opening inventory	Purchases returns, capital
Bank in hand	Bank overdraft

Method for a trial balance from a list of balances

1. Put each balance in its normal column.
2. Add each column.
3. If a figure is missing, find it by balancing (capital is often the missing item).
4. If the totals still differ, the difference goes to a suspense account.

Amending a trial balance. State each error, its effect on each column, then the amended totals. A balance put in the wrong column changes the gap by twice its value. A mis-copied figure changes the gap by the difference between right and wrong.

Errors that do not affect the trial balance

Type	Meaning	Short example (Nibley Joinery)
Commission	Wrong account of the right class	Gas of 410 debited to electricity
Compensating	Two errors cancel out	Wages overcast by 300, rent received overcast by 300
Complete reversal	Right accounts, sides swapped	Cheque of 650 from a customer debited to the customer and credited to bank
Omission	Transaction not recorded at all	A purchase invoice of 1,100 never entered
Original entry	Wrong amount on both sides	Purchase of 1,860 entered as 1,680 in both accounts
Principle	Wrong class of account	Purchase of a lathe debited to repairs

Memory aid. Alphabetical order is the syllabus order: commission, compensating, complete reversal, omission, original entry, principle. Say “C C C O O P”.

3.2 Correcting errors

Journal layout. Date, account debited, account credited, amount, narrative.

Method in steps

1. Write down what was done.
2. Write down what should have been done.
3. Find the difference in each account and make that the journal.
4. Add a narrative.

Error	Correcting journal
Omission	Make the whole missing entry
Commission	Debit or credit the right account, and take it from the wrong account
Principle	Move the amount from the wrong class to the right class
Original entry	Journal for the difference only: 1,860 − 1,680 = 180, debit purchases and credit the supplier
Complete reversal	Journal for double the amount: 650 + 650 = 1,300, debit bank and credit the customer
Compensating	Reverse each error separately, in one journal

Suspense account

Use. A temporary balancing figure when the trial balance does not agree and the cause is not yet known. It is not part of the final statements.

• Debits larger than credits: put the difference on the credit side of suspense.
• Credits larger than debits: put the difference on the debit side of suspense.
• Errors that need it: one-sided entries, different amounts on each side, two entries on the same side, addition mistakes.
• Errors that do not need it: the six types above.
• Finish: the account must clear to nil. If it does not, look for another error.

Worked reminder (Nibley Joinery). The trial balance showed debits greater than credits, and a credit of 2,330 was placed in suspense. Errors found:

Item	What happened	Effect on trial balance
1	A credit sale of 1,470 to B Holt was debited to B Holt as 1,740 and credited to sales as 1,470	Debits too high by 270
2	Wages of 2,060 paid by bank were debited to wages, with no credit to bank	Debits too high by 2,060

Correcting journal	Debit	Credit	Amount
1	Suspense	B Holt	270
2	Suspense	Bank	2,060

The two debits to suspense total 2,330, which equals the credit that opened it, so the account clears.

Adjusting profit

Rule. Only a correction that involves a revenue or expense account changes profit.

Correction	Profit
Revenue increased or expense decreased	Rises
Revenue decreased or expense increased	Falls
Both accounts are assets, liabilities or capital	No change
Both accounts are expenses, or both revenue	No change

Worked reminder. Nibley Joinery’s draft profit was 18,640.

Item	Adjustment
A drill costing 2,450 was debited to repairs	+2,450
A credit sale of 800 was entered as 600 in both accounts	+200
Electricity of 330 was debited to the gas account	0
Stationery of 160 paid by cheque was omitted	−160
Corrected profit	21,130

Effect on the statement of financial position

• Name each asset, liability or capital figure that changes, and say whether it rises or falls.
• A correction that raises profit raises capital by the same amount, because profit is added to capital.
• A complete reversal affecting bank changes the bank balance by double the amount.
• Total assets and total equity plus liabilities must stay equal after the changes.

In the drill example, non-current assets rise by 2,450, trade receivables rise by 200 (the sale was on credit) and the stationery omission lowers bank by 160. Assets rise by 2,490 and profit, and therefore capital, rises by 2,490, which matches 2,450 + 200 − 160.

Exam technique

The syllabus says candidates may be asked to prepare suspense accounts and journal entries, so practise both in full.

• Read each described error twice: first to classify it, then to decide whether it affects the trial balance totals.
• Give the account names, the Dr and Cr labels and the amounts in every journal. Answers tend to gain credit when each line is clear and complete.
• Work in two parts when a question gives several errors: first the journals, then the effect on profit and on the statement of financial position.
• Show a running total when adjusting profit, so that one slip does not hide the method.
• Check that the suspense account clears to nil before moving on.

Quick self-test

1. State two purposes of a trial balance.
2. A trial balance agrees. Give one reason the accounts may still contain an error.
3. Name the error type: office furniture was debited to office expenses.
4. Name the error type: rent of 380 was debited to rates.
5. A receipt of 650 from a customer was debited to the customer and credited to bank. Give the correcting journal.
6. A trial balance has debits 430 greater than credits. State the suspense entry.
7. A purchase of 1,860 was entered as 1,680 in both accounts. Give the correcting journal.
8. Does a compensating error need a suspense account?
9. A correction increases profit by 600. Draft profit is 14,500. State the corrected profit.
10. An expense paid by bank was omitted. State the effect on profit and on bank.

Answers

1. It checks that debits equal credits; it shows when an error exists; it provides balances for financial statements (any two).
2. An error of one of the six types does not change the totals.
3. Principle.
4. Commission.
5. Debit bank 1,300, credit customer 1,300 (double the amount).
6. A credit balance of 430 in suspense.
7. Debit purchases 180, credit the supplier 180.
8. No, the totals still agree.
9. 15,100.
10. Profit falls and bank falls by the same amount.

Where marks are usually lost

• Writing “the trial balance balances so there are no errors” without qualification.
• Putting the suspense balance on the wrong side.
• Opening a suspense account for an error that leaves the totals equal.
• Journals for a reversal or original entry that use the wrong amount.
• Giving a journal without a narrative.
• Changing profit when both accounts in the correction are expenses.
• Forgetting to carry the profit change into capital on the statement of financial position.
• Naming an error type without giving a reason from the facts.

Frequently asked questions

Which six errors do not affect the trial balance? Errors of commission, compensating errors, complete reversal, omission, original entry and principle. In each one the debits and credits stay equal, so the trial balance still agrees even though the books are wrong.

Which side of the suspense account does the difference go on? If debits are larger than credits, put the difference on the credit side of the suspense account; if credits are larger, put it on the debit side. The suspense account is only a temporary balancing figure and is not part of the final statements.

Which error corrections change profit? Only a correction that involves a revenue or expense account changes profit. A correction that raises profit also raises capital by the same amount in the statement of financial position.

How do you write a correcting journal entry in Cambridge IGCSE Accounting 0452? Write down what was done, then what should have been done, and make the difference in each account the journal entry. The journal layout is date, account debited, account credited, amount and narrative.

Does a trial balance that agrees prove the accounts are correct? No. A trial balance can agree while the accounts still contain one of the six errors that do not affect it, so writing that a balancing trial balance means there are no errors loses marks.

Official syllabus

Cambridge IGCSE Accounting syllabus for exams in 2027, 2028 and 2029 (version 1), published by Cambridge International Education: sections 3.1 The trial balance and 3.2 Corrections of errors.